Author Topic: 45 colt cast bullets-- 200gr swc or 230gr rn? (Read 1688 times)

crawford769 · « **on:** April 08, 2009, 03:06:53 PM »

a guy close by has cast bullets for $60\1000, im going to use them mainly for plinking but plan on taking it deer hunting too. what would be better, the 200 grain swc or the 230 grain rn? i'm loading it in a uberti cattleman so i can only load them to about 1000fps right?

MS Hitman · « **Reply #1 on:** April 08, 2009, 04:03:05 PM »

Neither

Autorim · « **Reply #2 on:** April 08, 2009, 04:43:50 PM »

That's not a bad price if the bullets are good for your revolver, but they may prove worthless. I shoot 200 grain round nose flat point bullets in my Ruger .45 Colt with Trail Boss and they do just fine for just shooting.

My hunting load is 265 or 270 grain bullet with a stiff powder charge. Are the bullets from a known source and cast from a good alloy? What is the finished diameter after sizing? There are other issues. I suggest passing on this deal unless you know they are from a good source.

jwp475 · « **Reply #3 on:** April 08, 2009, 05:27:39 PM »

Get a wide meplat flat point hard cast and life will be good. The LBT style flat points are the gold standard for game IMHO

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #4 on:** April 09, 2009, 03:23:18 AM »

Quote from: jwp475 on April 08, 2009, 05:27:39 PM

Get a wide meplat flat point hard cast and life will be good. The LBT style flat points are the gold standard for game IMHO

I second what JWP said.

blhof · « **Reply #5 on:** April 09, 2009, 03:31:05 AM »

I also agree with the above; the LBT WFN style bullet is deadly accurate and drops game like a cannon, at 850 to 950fps. I load 200grs for light plinking and cowboy action.

jwp475 · « **Reply #6 on:** April 09, 2009, 06:47:32 AM »

Quote from: MS Hitman on April 08, 2009, 04:03:05 PM

Neither

I wouldn't give out so much info all at once if I were you...

huntswithdogs · « **Reply #7 on:** April 09, 2009, 08:30:43 AM »

To clarify what the others are saying...These bullets sound like they're more designed for a 45ACP and not a 45LC. While a crimp ring ain't really needed, it's a help. ACP bullets don't generally have one. For hunting, I'd prefer to have a flat faced bullet, like the others have suggested. Another consideration is, what diameter are these bullets?

HWD

crawford769 · « **Reply #8 on:** April 09, 2009, 03:45:13 PM »

i guess i should have asked more about them, but they are a good price. i suppose the best thing to do is use these for plinking and get a couple hundred high quality cast hunting bullets. thanks for the responses.

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #9 on:** April 10, 2009, 02:18:44 AM »

i shot alot of acp bullets in the colt. If plinking is all your doing and you can get them cheap enough they will work for that. But if your looking for a hunting bullet or even serious accuarcy pass.

Blackhawk44 · « **Reply #10 on:** April 10, 2009, 11:08:16 AM »

You will also find that both weights will strike below the point of aim of your fixed sights, to one degree or another. 250 to 270gr bullets are what your gun is sighted for.

Ak.Hiker · « **Reply #11 on:** April 10, 2009, 07:03:41 PM »

The 265 LBT is my favorite bullet in my 45 Colt Blackhawk. A good 250 grain Keith would be another good choice.

crawford769 · « **Reply #12 on:** April 14, 2009, 05:11:12 PM »

do you guys cast your own lbt's or does someone sell them? between hunters supply bullets which is the better for whitetail then, the 250gr FP or the 255 gr SWC?

Sweetwater · « **Reply #13 on:** April 14, 2009, 05:30:47 PM »

I just went on the Hunters Bullet Supply website to look at the bullets you are picking between. The difference in the 5gr of weight between the two probably won't be noticeable. (250gr vs 255gr) The FP looks to have a pretty wide meplat in the picture. Fans of the SWC would probably go for the swc. As a general rule, the wider the meplat the more 'smack-down' you will see delivered to your quarry. A round nose at handgun velocities is not a good proposition for hunting. It will make a hole and blood will come out, but you won't see the damage that you would get from that wide flat point.

Montana Bullet Works sells (among other styles) LBT bullets from LBT molds. They have a website.

Hope that helps in your quest.

Regards,
Sweetwater

Blackhawk44 · « **Reply #14 on:** April 14, 2009, 08:17:28 PM »

As a rule, the SWC will show good accuracy across a wider velocity range. Sometimes the RNFP, has to be push a bit harder before showing their best accuracy.

Autorim · « **Reply #15 on:** April 15, 2009, 03:51:48 PM »

I find that with some WFN shapes, I must really pay attention to sizing or they won't chamber. That wide nose can engage the cylinder bore in front of the chamber if even .001 oversize. You can't go wrong with the SWC and I doubt if anything you shoot will know the difference.

crawford769 · « **Reply #16 on:** April 16, 2009, 03:31:45 PM »

the 260gr lbt wfn from montana bullet works looks pretty good. so the swc designs are usually more accurate? i only plan on pushing them 950fps max.

Sweetwater · « **Reply #17 on:** April 16, 2009, 04:12:31 PM »

That 260gr WFN at your 950fps and "normal" revolver distances, up to about 75 yards (depending almost entirely on your capability to put the bullet where it needs to go), should do quite nicely on up to Whitetail Deer size. On Veral Smith's DV scale that would rate about 85.5 and he speaks of 100 as a minimum, but also states some good marksmen have done well as low as 80 on that scale. I've taken fairly large Buck Antelope at over 100 yards with a DV of only 78. bang-flop. Shot placement is almost everything, expecially with handguns. You do NEED a good bullet.

I'm assuming you are shooting open sights and I suspect whatever range you can keep all shots on a desert-sized paper plate should work as an effective maximum range for you. Let that WFN do the rest. Recommend starting fairly close and working the target out further each time you can consistently stay on the plate. You will see where it starts to fall apart.

This may be a good place to put in a plug for IHMSA. It's a great bunch of people and the Field Pistol Course taught me what I needed to know about what I could do with my handgun; and what my limitations were out to 100 yards. First time I ever shot a Freedom Arms revolver and the only time I ever shot a 454Casull was about my 3rd year of competition. 10 for 10 with headshots on 100 yard Rams. I nearly fell down! Money is all that has kept me from owning one. Fantastic! I don't shoot like that anymore, but I do remember when....

Good luck and keep us informed of your exploits.

Regards,
Sweetwater

crawford769 · « **Reply #18 on:** April 20, 2009, 09:44:40 AM »

the 1000 230gr rn plinker bullets i bought look pretty good, they are .452" with a crimp groove so they must be 45colt bullets not acp bullets. hopefully they shoot good.

Sweetwater · « **Reply #19 on:** April 20, 2009, 04:56:24 PM »

Good luck with them!!
I have a RNFP for my 41mag that weighs in at 216gr. It shot good enough to go the Field Pistol course when I was shooting IHMSA 20 years ago. I did prefer the SWC for hunting back then and have since switched to the WFN variety.

Enjoy and stay safe.

Regards,
Sweetwater